Mozart to Beyonce: a lesson in classical music by Radio 3

But pop singer Beyonce is to help introduce a new generation to the wonders of classical music, as the BBC launches a 'beginner's guide' show for the masses.

The Listening Service will be the first such programme on the station since the 1970s, when Pied Piper set out to explain music to a generation of children and teenagers.

“Music is not just something that's just there in the background; it's a way of thinking and being in the world. Of course it's entertaining but it's also education in the best sense of the word, and can take us places we've never been before.”

Tom Service

The 2016 programme, however, will be aimed at adults too, after executives realised there are now "a lot of older people out there who love music or want to love music, and want to know more about it".

The show will be presented by Tom Service, with one episode featuring clips from Beyonce's Single Ladies to introduce the concept of repetition.

It will be matched by an experimental new Prom, held at the Royal Albert Hall this summer, in which Service "unpicks" Holst's Jupiter for an audience of all ages.

Launching on May 1, The Listening Service is pitched as a "journey of imagination and insight", with each programme based on a new question about classical music.

While being rooted firmly in classical music, it will span centuries of composition in all genres right up to the modern day, he said.

Its second programme will "take in everything from Beyonce to Stockhausen to Anton Bruckner", he added.

It will be a rare Radio 3 outing for the Beyoncé riff, which was also broadcast during the Proms several years ago during a celebration of work from classical composer Mark Anthony Turnage.

"That's the great thing about this, we can go those places," Service said. "What's wonderful about when we're living now and the BBC we're working in is offering people their own paths to explore music in their own way."

The first programme will tackle the question of how to begin a song, with a segment on the "best openers in pop".

The ever-popular Wolfgang Amadeus MozartCredit:
Alamy

The third show will explore the enduring popularity of Mozart, with another asking "what makes a great love song".

Service said the programme is designed for "enthusing people and inspiring their own voyages of discovery", adding he could go one step further than broadcasters of previous generations by "leading listeners through the vast digital Alexandria of Radio 3's website".

"It's about that connection with audiences," he said. "Music is not just something that's just there in the background; it's a way of thinking and being in the world. Of course it's entertaining but it's also education in the best sense of the word, and can take us places we've never been before.

"That means connecting with a big sweep of music history and other art forms. A commitment to listening as an active process."

"We're rightly concerned about young people and classical music, but actually there are a lot of older people out there as well who love music or want to love music, and want to know more about it."

Alan Davey, the Radio 3 controller, last year spoke of the changes in classical music general knowledge over the decades, with modern audiences not getting quite the same musical education in schools they once did.

"We have to perhaps offer more explanation and context for works," he told Radio 4. “It's not lowering the standard, it’s not making the content simple. It's about how we present it."

Service added: "I don't think Radio 3's job is to replace school curriculums. We've got an amazing opportunity to go inside the music in a way that can open ears and imaginations. That's our job."